Daniel C. Bonneau
IVACO Rolling Mills
I had the opportunity to work for Ivaco Rolling Mills in L’Orignal, Ont., Canada, this summer. I worked on the meltshop side of the steel mill, primarily at the furnace and ladle furnace with the process control team. I saw firsthand what steelmaking entails on the metallurgy and process side right next to the operators during production which was an incredible experience. This gave me the opportunity to apply what I had learned in material engineering while also experiencing what engineering work is like in industry.
My main project consisted of modifying the fluxing additives at the furnace and the ladle furnace. The overall goal was to improve the processing time and cost-effectiveness of the steel treatment for high carbon steels. The main limiting factor, and the target of project, was shortening the desulfurization time at the ladle furnace via top slag desulfurization. This involved discussing and searching for possible solutions and designing trials to modify the current slag composition then working with operators and foremen at both the electric arc furnace and ladle station to implement them. The corresponding changes in desulfurization rates were measured and compared to previous data while controlling for important variables and process fluctuations. Along with my main project, I helped monitor daily production issues and investigate specific problems that arose like off-specification heats or broken electrodes.
This experience gave me the opportunity to work with many parts of the steelmaking process. It allowed me to deepen my understanding and see how the process works together and what effects changes on one stage could have significant impacts. I learned a lot about the practical side of engineering like how to plan, coordinate and evaluate process changes, the importance of clear communication, and determining root causes for issues. These are invaluable experiences I will carry forward with me from my time at Ivaco. Thank you very much to Kevin for providing guidance and help during my time on the process team. Thanks as well to Paolo and the quality assurance team for giving me this chance, and the operators and foremen at Ivaco for showing me the ropes. And a special thanks to Lori Wharrey for her help and AIST for their support.